Sunday, December 31, 2017

Most Popular Facebook Posts for 2017

It's the time of year to reflect on what's happened over the last twelve months, and to look forward to a new year.

As John McNamara reported in the Bowie Blade-News this week, development projects, the Maglev project, the Blue Sunday triple homicide, and attempts to recall city council members were all noteworthy stories from 2017.

Development projects in the City of Bowie have dominated the news for the last two years, including stories about the Marketplace apartments, the Jesuit property, the Melford property, and the new indoor sports facility.

A group calling itself Bowie Citizens for Accountable Government attempted to recall Bowie city council members Diane Polangin, Jimmy Marcos and Mayor Fred Robinson. The group succeeded in recalling Polangin, thus forcing an upcoming election for the District 2 council seat.

Plans for a magnetic high-speed train included routes that would bisect some Bowie neighborhoods. The plans were refined, and by the end of the year, only one Old Bowie neighborhood is still threatened.

All of those stories were certainly covered on Bowie Living, but popular posts on social media don't always coincide with the biggest news stories of the day.

Below are the ten most popular Bowie Living Facebook posts of 2017 in order of popularity, followed by a few "honorable mentions."

A 22-year-old Temple University student from Bowie who was in Miami Beach to celebrate her birthday drove her BMW into a Florida police officer and was fatally shot by another officer in front of a crowd of onlookers, police said.

Cariann Hithon crashed into several cars Sunday evening as people watched from sidewalk cafes in the tourist district known as South Beach. Video posted by the Miami Herald showed people standing around the wrecked car, wondering aloud what had happened. Then the BMW suddenly started moving again and took out the officer standing in front of it. Another officer fired three shots into the car.

Each year Bowie Living creates its own "fake news" for April Fools' Day. 2017 was no exception, although this story was a repeat from 2011.

A joint investigation between the Bowie and Prince George's County police departments into a rash of recent burglaries resulted in the apprehension of the youngest suspect ever to be arrested in the county. A three year-old boy was detained by police on Thursday after detectives working a stakeout in Bowie's Whitehall section observed the preschooler exiting a house through a "doggy door" with stolen goods.

An 18-year-old former Bowie School student was arrested last week and charged after he came to school, confronted a current student as part of an ongoing dispute, and stabbed the student with a pocket knife.

The student, who is a juvenile, suffered non-life threatening injuries, according to Bowie police.

Several people have asked about the construction project between the Chick-Fil-A and Rip’s on Route 301. The new building is going to be a larger Chick-Fil-A, and the existing Chick-Fil-A building at that location will be torn down.

One of the benefits of the new design is a modified drive-thru configuration. The current drive-thru line frequently backs up onto East Ballpark Road, and it makes several parking spots unusable – including the handicap spaces.

The new drive-thru line will be longer, will be two lanes wide in some spots, and will block fewer parking spaces. The parking lot will have more parking spots overall, including more handicap parking spaces, and the handicap spaces will be more accessible.

The Bowie Police Department had been collecting donations for Houston Police Officers through last night (Saturday).

Lauren Brown captured this photo in the Bowie Police Department lobby Saturday morning. Lauren saw a line of cars waiting to donate their change to victims of Hurricane Harvey at City Hall Saturday morning, and a steady number of people were dropping off toiletries and other items inside the police department's lobby.

Photo Courtesy of Lauren Brown

Honorable Mentions

Theft from Swim Club

An Edgewater woman was charged and later plead guilty in a theft of more than $100,000 from the Belair Bath & Tennis Club.

Iconic Bowie sign to be stored for safekeeping

But the sign will live on somewhere in Bowie. It’s now in the hands of city officials, who plan to display it as a historical artifact.

“It is very much a piece of mid-century Bowie history,” said Pam Williams, the city’s manager of historic properties and its unofficial historian. “Everybody thought it was a critical piece of our culture.”

City retrofitting stormwater pond

September 20, 2017

Multiple people sent notes to Bowie Living asking about the construction taking place next to the Belair Swim & Racquet Club (BSR). The Midwood Pond stormwater retrofit is the first of a dozen stormwater pond upgrades that the City of Bowie will be performing over the next five to seven years. The retrofits will mean less pollution flowing into the Chesapeake Bay.

Photo coutesy of the City of Bowie

Bowie Branch Library Reopens after 6-month renovation project

June 29, 2017

Photo courtesy of Gant Brunnett Architects

Mishap at Tulip Grove Elementary School construction site

November 29, 2017

The new Tulip Grove Elementary School is still expected to open in the fall of 2018 despite a mishap at the construction site.

Photo courtesy of Mark De Russo

Promised improvements made to the Bowie Race Course property

September 22, 2017

Bowie High School Football field gets turf and lights

October 22, 2017

Courtesy photo

Vigil held for slain Bowie State University Student

Hundreds filled the Samuel L. Myers Auditorium Monday for a candlelight vigil to honor Collins, who was murdered Saturday on the University of Maryland campus in what police said was an unprovoked stabbing. A Severna Park man, Sean Christopher Urbanski, has been charged with first and second degree murder and is in custody, being held without bond.

City of Bowie Centennial Finale

May 6, 2017

The celebration of the City of Bowie's centennial culminated in an event at City Hall that included the burial of a time capsule .